What? You don’t WEAVE?!
Image from the book "Hands on Weaving" by Barbara Liebler
The Whole Earth Catalog from 40 years ago certainly has its share of items that seem ridiculous today. Or maybe it just seems ridiculous that any subject under the sun can be turned into a hobby. I guess average people don’t have time for or interest in hobbies and crafts as much these days, or they will just go out and buy the thing they need, for example, textiles for the home. However, the section on weaving and other fiber arts is full of how-to guides, which I’m sure promoted the popularity of weaving everything that possibly could be woven. I love images like this drawing, where it shows that the resident is clearly an enthusiast of this craft.
I noticed a particular book featured in the Whole Earth Catalog- “The Techniques of Rug Weaving” by Peter Collingwood (1968). This is a book that my mentor today is telling me to check out. I guess it is kind of a bible on this subject, and a more complete version has yet to replace it. It is incredibly dense and full of illustrations of every possible weaving technique or knot that you could need. 
Will I do anything with this information? Will I end up actually producing rugs for a living, or is this not a market that will favor me in a western country? After all, so many rugs come from factories in developing nations, which keeps them affordable for most people. And if I also work in other techniques, will I ever be expert enough at weaving to draw the consumer for my rugs over other rugs? Hopefully I will draw enough of a niche audience, as I take on the challenge of creating more of an art rug, rather than a traditional one, and not just leave myself as a hobbyist.
I really appreciate the efforts of the following artist.
Travis Meinolf weaving in Dolores Park, San Francisco. From SF Chronicle.
Travis Meinolf, a recent graduate of California College of Arts, (actionweaver.com), has set up many projects where he brings the process of weaving to people who might otherwise know nothing about this essential process of creating the cloth that is a part of our everyday lives. He has built a portable loom which he rolls out into a park or other public place where he just weaves and interacts with people who are curious.
"The Weaving Place" Photo from Cup of Red Blog. Click image to go to source page.
For a project called “The Weaving Place,” he placed simple laser-cut looms in the Vancouver Art Gallery for the public to use. The resulting small weavings were sewn together to create 15 blankets which were distributed to the homeless and to a women’s shelter.
Although cheap and convenient factory textiles abound, the homemade ones still outshine the rest. They are the ones you don’t replace; they are the ones that carry on through generations. They are made with love.
Category: Whole Earth History | Tags: DIY, Textiles, Weaving 3 comments »
September 28th, 2010 at 17:01
Ahh, the ebb and flow of everything – the pendulum swings back and forth and back and forth, not unlike a weaver’s shuttle. Once an essential survival skill, now a craft hobby, but just you wait… that shuttle will pass back to the other side and weaving will again become an essential skill for survival. Just you wait, Crafty, just you wait. Your day in the sun is coming!
September 29th, 2010 at 19:35
Your post made me think of Teotitlán del Valle, a small town in Oaxaca, Mexico where weaving is the primary economic activity. About 150 families keep the weaving tradition alive there and many are reviving the use of natural dyes like cochineal and indigo. Their handmade rugs are sought after and valued, both by Mexicans and visitors from abroad, and many are considered “art rugs” as you put it. My impression from spending time in Mexico is that handmade objects are still highly valued there, and many more people are involved in craft processes through choice or necessity. Wouldn’t it be cool if we had weaving towns here, and more art/craft centers of production in general?
Teotitlán del Valle:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Teotitlán_del_Valle
Weaving workshop for travelers:
http://traditionsmexico.com/wr4_zap_tap_weave-0607.htm
November 4th, 2010 at 21:04
Rachel’s idea of living in a hub of textiles and crafts is something I often fantasize about. It is a romantic notion that makes me wonder…is this possible in our highly developed, digitally enhanced, second life thriving Western culture?
Perhaps that is what has brought us all here, to the academy, this sound utopia of stress and making. Although we fret often and hard, for this temporary time we have this safe house niche for makers and people of similar interests. The difference is that they are able to sustain themselves…which I guess is our ultimate goal as students as well.
Maybe we should start some makers commune on the outskirts of Portland after practicum.